1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a faucet, more particularly to a two-piece faucet valve seat that is easy to manufacture and that reduces cost.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the past, faucets/taps were usually made of iron materials. Due to iron being prone to rusting, some manufacturers have adopted using copper alloy instead. However, copper alloy tends to be more expensive and also contains harmful heavy metals such as lead. Some manufacturers adopt zinc alloy instead. Nevertheless, zinc alloy has lower structural strength and poor resistance against corrosion, shortening the service life of these faucets/taps.
In summary, faucets/taps made from any of the aforementioned materials have their respective disadvantages. Moreover, due to the fact that these materials also have poor glossiness that in order to create a better appearance, a plating treatment is performed, which is not only costly but also pollutes the environment.
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional faucet 10 includes a tubular main body 11, a discharge pipe 12 and a switch handle 13. The main body 11 has a divider portion 113 and first and second compartments at either side of the divider portion 113. The first compartment has an open end 111 for connecting a liquid source, and the second compartment has an open end 112 for mounting the switch handle 13. The divider portion 113 is formed with a plurality of valve holes 114, which cooperate with a valve member 131 that is disposed below the switch handle 13. The divider portion 113 is formed with a liquid discharge hole 115 through an outer surface thereof for mounting the discharge pipe 12. A liquid inlet pipe 116 is disposed in the first compartment for connecting the liquid source with the valve holes 114 for transferring liquid from the liquid source into the valve holes 114. When a user operates the switch handle 13, the valve member 131 is driven to bring the liquid from the liquid source toward the liquid discharge hole 115 and out of the discharge pipe 12.
The conventional faucet 10 has the following disadvantages. In order to create the tubular main body 11 with the divider portion 113 in a one-piece structure, a blank of the main body 11 is pre-developed by casting, forging, etc., followed by the use of different machines for drilling, milling, etc., to form the first and second compartments and the valve holes 119. A majority of the materials used to make the blank will be cut away during the subsequent drilling/milling process, leading to significant waste. Furthermore, in order to create the first and second compartments, deep-hole cutting method has to be applied on the blank, which is a complex manufacturing process.